Russia hits Ukraine with largest aerial attack as Trump talks to Zelenskyy and Putin
Russian missiles and drones hammered Kyiv in an overnight attack, the largest aerial assault on the Ukrainian capital since the war began more than three years ago.
The attack came shortly after President Trump held an hour-long phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a conversation Trump said made no progress towards ending the conflict. Shortly after the bombardment, Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who called it a “very important and useful conversation”.
Air raid sirens wailed across Kyiv for eight hours into Friday morning, and many families sought shelter in underground metro stations during the Russian onslaught. At least one person was killed and more than 20 people injured across several districts of Kyiv.
Officials in Kyiv said apartment blocks, schools, warehouses and railroad infrastructure were also damaged by the roughly 550 drones and 11 missiles that landed on the capital.
Russia’s defence ministry said the aerial strikes were launched in response to the “terrorist acts of the Kyiv regime.” Russia has been intensifying its bombing campaign against Ukraine in recent weeks as ceasefire talks between the two nations have floundered.
“It was a harsh, sleepless night,” Zelenskyy said in a social media post, adding that the attack shows Russia has “no intention of ending the war and terror.”
Zelenskyy called for increased pressure on Russia and more air defense equipment. The Trump administration earlier this week paused shipments of critical weapons to Ukraine – such as missiles, ammunition and air defense systems – a move that Kyiv said would limit Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against intensifying Russian airstrikes and advances on the front lines.
In a Telegram post about his call with Trump on Friday, Zelenskyy said the pair talked about Russian airstrikes and increasing Ukraine’s air defense capabilities. He called the American president “very informed” about Ukraine, and said they had agreed to work on increasing the protection of Ukraine’s skies.
Zelenskyy also claimed that he and Trump had a agreed on a meeting of their teams. “We are ready for direct projects with America and believe that this is extremely necessary for security, especially with regard to drones and related technologies,” he added.
That phone call came one day after Trump spoke with Putin about ending the war in Ukraine. Trump said he was “very disappointed” with the conversation.
“I didn’t make any progress with him today at all,” he said, adding “I’m not happy about that.”
The Kremlin’s foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov, said Putin told Trump that Russia will not back down in trying to achieve its goals in Ukraine, and that the war will continue until Moscow gets to the “root causes” of the conflict.
Ushakov did not explain what Putin’s goals in Ukraine were, but the Russian leader has said in the past that he wants Ukraine to forfeit territory and refrain from joining military alliances such as NATO.
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